Joe Biden called for a massive new aid package for Israel and Ukraine, linking the wars in both countries to American security, while denouncing a rise in anti-semitism and Islamophobia in the U.S.
“American leadership is what holds the world together,” Biden said. “American alliances are what keep us, America, safe. American values are what make us a partner that other nations want to work with. To put all that at risk if we walk away from Ukraine, if we turn our backs on Israel, it is just not worth it.”
A purpose of the speech was to show why the Israel-Hamas war and Ukraine-Russia conflict matters to the American public.
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He said that support for both countries will be a “smart investment that’s going to pay dividends for American security for generations, help us keep American troops out of harm’s way, help us build a world that is safer, more peaceful, more prosperous for our children and grandchildren.”
Biden also said with certainty that the bombing of a hospital in Gaza earlier this week “was not done by the Israelis.” The New York Times and other news outlets first reported the claim, from the Gaza health ministry, that the blast was from an Israeli air strike. But they had to revise and update their headlines as the Israeli military blamed it on a failed missile launch by Palestinian Islamic Jihad. Biden later said that that it “appears” that the terrorist group was responsible, citing Defense Department intelligence.
The speech was a rare Oval Office address carried in primetime across broadcast and cable networks, underscoring the gravity of the crisis and the determination of the White House to make sure his message breaks through.
The speech was a prelude to the White House’s supplemental budget request to Congress, currently paralyzed given the Republican leadership battle in the House. The president called for putting aside what he characterized as partisan squabbles that prevent addressing the international crises.
“Time is of the essence,” he said. “We can’t let petty, partisan, angry politics get in the way of our responsibility as a great nation.”
The president also addressed the rise in antisemitism and Islamophobia in the U.S. since the Hamas attack on Israel.
“We must, without equivocation, denounce anti-semitism,” Biden said. “We must also without equivocation, denounce Islamophobia. To all of you hurting, those of you hurting, I want you to know: I see you. You belong. And I want to say this to you: You’re all American. You’re all American.”
“In moments like these, and when fear and suspicion and anger and rage run hard, we have to work harder than ever to hold on to the values that make us who we are,” he said.
The White House is battling softening support for Ukraine among House Republicans, who declined to make additional funding part of a budget resolution last month. But Biden’s goal was to show how the crises in Ukraine and Israel are interconnected, warranting votes for an “unprecedented” $100 billion aid package. He noted that Russia and Hamas “both want to completely annihilate a neighboring democracy.”
“If we walk away and let Putin erase Ukraine’s independence, would be aggressors around the world would be emboldened to try the same,” he said. “The risk of conflict and chaos could spread in other parts of the world. In the Indo-Pacific, in the Middle East, especially in the Middle East. Iran is supporting Russia in Ukraine, and is supporting Hamas and other terrorist groups in the region.”
The speech got a rare endorsement from Fox News commentator Brit Hume, who said that it “may be remembered as one of the best, if not the best, speeches of his presidency.”
“He was firm, he was unequivocal, he was strong as he has been particularly in recent days before he went to Israel and while he was over there,” Hume said.
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